On the quantitative hazard domino effect analysis with potentially dangerous materials

The present paper is inclined to introduce the authors' study of domino effect in the hazard-prone chemical or any other materials. As is known,domino effect is a kind of complicated phenomena that may lead to severe accidents in processing industry,which can and in many cases do serve as the cause to lead secondary accidents in nearby related installations or the surrounding industrial businesses. Academically speaking,domino effect is also referred to as the so-called knock-on effect,cascade effect or escalation effect usually resulting in disastrous consequences. Since the production and manipulation of the industrial process is usually organized in a continuous mutually connected system,accidents caused by the domino effect in chemical plants or hazardous materials generally prove to be more disastrous and tragic in nature. Years' study has pushed us to work out a method in the present paper for risk analysis that is expected to reduce accidents with domino effect in nature. The actual process that enables the users to analyze and reduce the risk index can be stated as follows:Analyze the risk index of the domino effects of all the equipment and installations involved in the area and their involved or interlocked or intervening functions in the likely-to-lead domino-effect accident chain. Identifying and predicting the accident scene and related features of domino effect may help to predict the likely causes involved through quantitative computation and analysis of the risks likely to take place and in turn to take necessary preventive measures and available methods to halt any more accidents of similar nature. Thus,it can be seen that the proposed method is highly helpful to establish regional safety and protective countermeasures so as to prevent the likely domino effects. In addition to the main text,a map of individual risk and F-N social risk curves has also been provided. The IR and F-N curves reveal that remarkable changes have been brought about as a result of using the proposed method here in this paper,particularly when domino effect was paid more attention to. Thus,the present research on domino effect is expected to bring contribution to the quantitative risk analysis and safety management in controlling the accidents of this nature.